Penske makes major change, swapping entire pit crews for Austin Cindric and Ryan Blaney

Team Penske is swapping the pit crews for Ryan Blaney and Austin Cindric, as both drivers begin the 2026 Chase for the championship.

Blaney, the 2023 NASCAR Cup champion, is the No. 2 seed in the reset standings, while Cindric is the No. 15 seed. 

Blaney has had issues on pit road all year, even in his most recent win at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. The No. 12 pit crew was ranked 32nd among 35 full-time teams, per information on NASCAR Insights.

In contrast to that, Cindric's No. 2 crew that will now pit Blaney rank tenth among all teams.

The new No. 12 Team Penske pit crew for Blaney: Jourdan Osinskie (jackman), Andrew Lackey (fuelman), Justin Armwood (front tire changer), Geoffrey Wall (rear tire changer), and Jesse Mills (tire carrier).

The new No. 2 Team Penske pit crew for Cindric: Graham Stoddard (jackman), Chris Conklin (fuelman), Keiston France (front tire changer), Justin Fox (rear tire changer), and Trevor Aspey (tire carrier).

Penske has made several tweaks to the Blaney pit crew this year, first in April after losing nearly 100 positions on pit road in the first two months of the year. They swapped out the jackman. A little over a month later, they made another change to the rear tire changer as the No. 12 team tried to rectify their pit road issues.

There have been no announced changes on the No. 22 Team Penske Ford of Joey Logano, who enters the Chase as the No. 9 seed in pursuit of his fourth NASCAR Cup title.